Bills are trying to make Buffalo more enticing to the next owner

Posted by Mike Florio on June 23, 2011, 9:41 AM EDT

Getty Images

The Buffalo Bills have inched to the top of the “most likely to move to L.A.” list, given that AEG now intends not only to host a team in the stadium it wants to build but also to own that team. In light of the widespread belief that the Bills will be sold to the highest bidder once 92-year-old owner Ralph Wilson no longer owns the team (and that’s as delicately as we can put it), the highest bidder could decide that it makes good business sense to then move the team from Buffalo to the nation’s second-largest market.

Team CEO Russ Brandon joined Howard Simon and Joe Buscaglia of WGR on Thursday, primarily to promote Friday night’s uniform unveiling event. Inevitably, Brandon was asked about the team’s future.

As to the succession plan, if any, for ownership of the team, Brandon declined to talk, deferring any comment on the subject to Mr. Wilson. But Brandon dropped a few hints as to the manner in which Mr. Wilson could be trying to engineer the future of the franchise.

The folks at Buffalo Rumblings wisely locked on to Brandon’s acknowledgement that the team already is talking to Erie County officials regarding an extension to the stadium lease. Obviously, a new lease could include terms that would make it harder for the next owner of the Bills to move the team.

That said, Tim Leiweke of AEG has said that AEG would write any necessary checks to escape any applicable leases. (As to the question of whether AEG has contacted the Bills, Brandon offered up the always-ominous “not that I’m aware of.”)

Brandon also emphasized, in response to concerns about the impact of the next CBA on small-market teams, the concept of regionalization. Which in our assessment means that, in order to keep the team in Buffalo, more games in the future will have to be played in Toronto, and greater efforts will be needed to draw fans into Buffalo from Toronto and other areas of Western New York and Ontario.

Thus, even though Bills fans may want all 10 annual games to be played in Ralph Wilson Stadium, they need to realize that sacrificing some games to Toronto (possibly, in time, as much as a 50-50 schedule split) could be the best alternative to sacrificing all of them to California.

Bottom line? The next owner of the team will need to be able to conclude that it makes good business sense to stay in Buffalo. Between extending the lease in Buffalo and expanding the team’s footprint in its region, the Bills appear to have a plan in place for nudging the needle toward not moving.

56 responses to “Bills are trying to make Buffalo more enticing to the next owner”

If the Bills leave Buffalo that would leave New York with no professional football teams despite the fact that the Giants are considered NY’s team along with the team that is considered the red headed stepchild that hasn’t won anything for over 42 years!

“Thus, even though Bills fans may want all 10 annual games to be played in Ralph Wilson Stadium, they need to realize that sacrificing some games to Toronto (possibly, in time, as much as a 50-50 schedule split) could be the best alternative to sacrificing all of them to California.”

This is the harsh reality in a nutshell.

Do you want to be 1 1/2 away from your Bills for half the season, or a 4-5 hour flight?

Does anyone think Ralph Wilson has no succession play? What happens to the Bills after he passes will permanently affect his legacy. It’s hard for me to believe he doesn’t care about how his name lives on in the history of professional football and in Western NY.

Regionalization doesn’t necessarily mean playing games in other cities to me. The only positive out of the Toronto deal is the direct influx of cash from Rogers. It could possibly mean drawing (more) fans from surrounding areas to come to Buffalo for games. Who wants to drive in from Rochester or Ontario to see the Bills of the last 10 years other than to get stupid drunk somewhere other than home? Put a winning product out on the field and see who comes.

If the loyal Bills fan who sell out their stadium and sit through horrendous weather conditions even when the team isn’t good lose their team it’s a disgrace. And every other team owner who would vote for a new Bills owner who they know would move the team should be embarrassed. There are some things in life that just shouldn’t be about the money, especially when the profits are already in the hundreds of millions.

The Bills playing in both Toronto and Buffalo could be interesting in the short term, but I don’t see it working in the long term. Just ask the Packers how enjoyable it was to play two games at County Stadium in Milwaukee for all those years.

Either stay in Buffalo, or move to Toronto or L.A. My money is on the latter.

Why do people assume the only fans a team needs to be finincially successful are the number of fans to fill the stadium?
Yes, the Bills will draw more fans to the stadium if/when they have a winning team. But the trick is to have more people excited about the team. People who wont go to the games, but who live in toronto, Cuse, Rochester, Albany who get involved because “their” team is winning. Buy jersey’s, watch the games and see advertising, local tv commercials or even in stadium ads (you dont think those are put there only for the at the game fans do you?)….

When the Bills were winning AFC Titles they had no problem selling out games. They’ve sucked forever and keep making coaching changes that do little to inspire hope. I’ve been to a Bills game (Season opener ’04) and the place was fun, packed and full of real fans. The whole town has Bills’ banners on businesses, homes with old-school pennants in the windows–similar to driving through Pittsburgh neighborhoods during season. If they would quit hiring 8-8 at-best coaches and draft a QB, they may win again. Winning cures everything (unless Al Davis owns the team).

Tim Leiweke is all talk. He had an opportunity to buy the Rams last year. There were two bids made known and only one viable one after Rush Limbaugh jumped on one as a minority owner. Then out of no where Stan Kroenke purchases the other 60% at the bargain price which Khan had negotiated. If Leiweke really wants a team build a stadium right now. It’s not like he’s wanting to build a stadium in the middle of no where. Someone will want to use it for concerts, bowl games, possibly NCAA Final 4, and maybe even a Superbowl bid. If there is a stadium there teams with a poor stadium situation may be enticed to relocate.

This is why capitalism sucks. I lived in LA, there are about as many football fans in LA as there are in Buffalo. The ones that are in LA are 60% Raiders fans, 10% Chargers fans and 30% soccer fans. Who in LA wants the Los Angeles Bills?

When the Bills were winning AFC Titles they had no problem selling out games. They’ve sucked forever and keep making coaching changes that do little to inspire hope. I’ve been to a Bills game (Season opener ’04) and the place was fun, packed and full of real fans. The whole town has Bills’ banners on businesses, homes with old-school pennants in the windows–similar to driving through Pittsburgh neighborhoods during season. If they would quit hiring 8-8 at-best coaches and draft a QB, they may win again. Winning cures everything (unless Al Davis owns the team).
************************************************
You don’t mean the Al Davis that’s won 3 Super Bowls and has his young team ready to compete for another, not THAT Al Davis, right?

Bills tickets cost half of the league average yet they still get games blacked out. They’re worse off than Jacksonville. There’s not a single decent player on the team. They haven’twon a playoff game since 1995.

1995.

In 1995 when the Bills last won a playoff game

Gas cost $1.09/gallon
Win95 was released
DVD technology was announced
Coolios “Gangstas Paradise” was the #1 song

aside from a 92 year old owner, how is football in Buffalo less economically viable than Cleveland, Detroit and Green Bay? As a Bills fan I am sick and tired of hearing the same “Bills could move to LA” story over and over again for at least the last 15 years. Many of us PFTers don’t think LA deserves another shot after losing 3 teams over the years, but this is a different NFL now than when the Rams and Raiders bolted, the NFL is BIG BU$INE$$ now and only pretends to care about the fans. I say hurry up and get it over with, I’m sick of hearing about it – regardless of whether it’s the Bills or not, some fan base is going to end up royally screwed.

Why would anyone shell out $240 for a 300 Level seat to see the Bills at Toronto’s Ripoff Center when the same $$$ can get you a mid-field seat at Lambeau Field in the first 25 rows to see the Packers? Better yet, what the hell is wrong with that picture when Lambeau is sold-out for the next 30 years????

Toronto will NEVER have an NFL team. The politicians and potential owners here are just too greedy.

Yes, L.A. is gigantic, but didn’t this city lose two teams only like 15-16 years ago? The NFL, as a league and a brand, has flourished in that time period without having a franchise in the ‘second-biggest media market.’ Not having a team there has not negatively impacted the league. I’m hoping the Bills do have a secret plan once the owner passes, and they tell L.A. to F’ off.

Shouldn’t L.A. be more concerned with, say, finding an owner for the Dodgers who isn’t stealing money from the team?

Splitting games between two sites is an awful idea. Like the old adage about QBs (if you have more than one starting QB, you don’t have one), when it comes to home fields you have one or none. Splitting games between two cities doesn’t really broaden your market so much as it marginalizes each market. Why would fans from Toronto travel to Buffalo when they can just wait for the team to play games there? Same with Buffalo to Toronto. Featuring a game every (or every other) season out of town is okay. As far as I’m concerned you can play every preseason game out of market. But splitting regular season games down the middle will not work anywhere.

I currently live in LA, and I work at a job where I get to hear a ton of peoples opinions on having an NFL team here…. Nobody cares. If you live in LA, and love football, you’re either a Chargers fan, Raiders fan, Rams fan, or USC fan.

Nobody here is craving for an NFL team, theres just way too many other teams, and things to care about in LA.

Oh yeah, and Im from Rochester, so having the Bills leave Buffalo would literally ruin a huge part of my life.

Fight to keep your team in your city . You have a proud tradition of excellence and home town pride. Cities like Buffalo and Green Bay have proven that small towns can support an NFL team without the greedy comglomerates putting their greasy dirty hands on the very fabric of American sports.
I’m from L.A. and we don’t need to steal your team and your cities enjoyment . The NFL owes us a team , not somebody else’s , we want a team from scratch , that’s right a draft team . Our city deserves to name our own team and develop pride from the ground up .

“I currently live in LA, and I work at a job where I get to hear a ton of peoples opinions on having an NFL team here…. Nobody cares.”

This is contradictory isn’t it. If tons of people are commenting, then that indicates a level of concern doesn’t it? If nobody cared, as you state, tons of people wouldn’t be commenting, now would they?

“If you live in LA, and love football, you’re either a Chargers fan, Raiders fan, Rams fan, or USC fan.”

Well not really there are fans of all 32 teams here. Not all 17 million people fit into your nice little boxes now do they?

“Nobody here is craving for an NFL team, theres just way too many other teams, and things to care about in LA.”

Wrong again. There are plenty of people ‘craving’ a team, as you say. Can we start with Tim Leiweke and Ed Roski and go from there?

“Oh yeah, and Im from Rochester, so having the Bills leave Buffalo would literally ruin a huge part of my life.”

Thanks for sharing that you have an agenda for posting the above comments.

Come on guys. There’s no way the Bills stay in Buffalo unless the next owner wants them there and has the deep pockets to make it happen.

The idea of regionalization of the franchise isn’t going to work, because assuming it is successful in Toronto the team is going to get bought and moved there. Toronto has a lot more money than Buffalo, assuming no deep pockets billionaire in western NY who wants to buy the Bills as a local product.

The market is the market and the more that the NFL opens up to market forces the less the teams can resist them.

Now mind you the LA region is about 120 miles by 95 miles square and is made up of 5 counties and numerous cities, yet two individuals who probably have never met, seem to have a firm grasp of the LA market.

To wit:
rukiddnme29 noted, “I lived in LA, there are about as many football fans in LA as there are in Buffalo. The ones that are in LA are 60% Raiders fans, 10% Chargers fans and 30% soccer fans.”

So he/she has given you a percentage split of the fan base in LA. Clearly they are beyond reproach in their analysis, after all those are hard percentages.

And on the other hand we have “gregwestlake” who notes that, “If you live in LA, and love football, you’re either a Chargers fan, Raiders fan, Rams fan, or USC fan.”

Hold one here, something is wrong here. How can one guy miss the Rams and USC and the other guy not give precedence to the supposed greater proportion of Raider fans? The most likely scenario? They really don’t have a clue.

The first line of this article says ” the bills have inched closer to the most likely to move list.” Where does that “fact” come from??
The bills were not one of the 5 teams mentioned by AEG that they have been in contact with.
In the article it says that bills COO Russ Brandon has heard nothing from AEG in regards to buying them the team.
And if AEG has the cash to buy out a stadium lease don’t you think they have the cash to buy a team.
Honestly out of the five teams that AEG named I think the Vikings or jags have a better chance to move to la. No loyal fan base in j’ville, no stadium deal in minny.

Actually, I’m not a Bills fan, nor do I live in Western NY (which explains my ignorance towards their former pro basketballl teams bolting), but I do admit to having a soft spot for the Bills and their plight. (Irony of ironies, I’m a Colts fan, of the overnight move. Yes, I’m aware).

“The difference between LA and Buffalo though is Buffalo loses teams and never gets any back, while LA has lost teams and yet more are on the way.”
Wow, arrogant a bit? Hey, thanks for making my point easy for me. That’s why I’d be thrilled if the Bills are able to stick around.

@ recon163
Yeah, let me go do my due diligence about that. I suppose it could be a ‘those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it’ scenario…but, my point, is the fan support for pro football there? All I ever hear or read is that’s a Lakers and SC city. Please tell me b/c I’m only going by hearsay at this point..

“Yeah, let me go do my due diligence about that. I suppose it could be a ‘those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it’ scenario…but, my point, is the fan support for pro football there?”

There is, but it isn’t like other cities. Angelenos are not keen on giving millions of public dollars to team owners for stadiums that are money makers for the owner. For the owner that indicates interest, for the league that indicates interest, and the fan well they get the privilege of paying. In LA we don’t want to pay you to come here, pay you to stay, or pay you to watch.

Type in ‘Raiders vs NFL Court’ and check out the ruling from the appeal court. This will give you a sense of why the Raiders moved.

My fav? Al wanted $20 million and two guaranteed Super Bowls from the NFL before he would commit to a stadium he wasn’t going to spend a dime of his own money building! It is beyond comparison.

There have been numerous attempts to build stadiums here in the area but our unwillingness to fund a stadium has been the main reason for the present condition.

“All I ever hear or read is that’s a Lakers and SC city.”

LA is no different than other cities. The winning team is popular during the winning streak.

Buffalo does not deserve to lose their team. If that senile, old fool that owns the team doesn’t set it up so that a local group can purchase the team before he dies, then he is, undoubtedly, one of the most selfish men in the world. Seriously, what does a 92 year old man need with an extra 50 million dollars before he dies in the next year or two?

As a lifelong Patriots fan, I have always considered Bills fans to be my cousins, if not my brothers. Rich Stadium was Schaeffer Stadium on steroids. Kelley was their Brady. Levy was their Belichick. They owned the 90s we owned the 2000s. But more than anything, their fans support their team, and have done so for 50 years, in some of the worst weather, at one of the worst stadiums, in the league.

So now there is a clamor to move this team to Los Angeles, where they have been unable to keep 2 teams already despite being the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Screw L.A. Ralph Wilson, sell the team to a local group before you die. Do the right thing.

When the Bills were winning AFC Titles they had no problem selling out games. They’ve sucked forever and keep making coaching changes that do little to inspire hope. I’ve been to a Bills game (Season opener ’04) and the place was fun, packed and full of real fans. The whole town has Bills’ banners on businesses, homes with old-school pennants in the windows–similar to driving through Pittsburgh neighborhoods during season. If they would quit hiring 8-8 at-best coaches and draft a QB, they may win again. Winning cures everything (unless Al Davis owns the team).
************************************************
You don’t mean the Al Davis that’s won 3 Super Bowls and has his young team ready to compete for another, not THAT Al Davis, right?

“jagfan”, I should have known.
*******************************************

It’s the same Al Davis that needed a big time loan from Ralph Wilson, or he loses his team.